During the last Ryder Cup, Graeme McDowell used the term ‘dude’ to describe Victor Dubuisson. On Friday, during his fourball match with Soren Kjeldsen, the Frenchman earned a new moniker – ‘the man’.
Dubuisson was in extreme pain on the 15th hole after locking his knee and it seemed he was going to pull out of the match.
But the two-time Turkish Airlines Open champion carried on, hobbling to the 16th tee and smashing the driver 293 yards while playing on one leg. He actually went on to make a birdie.
His playing partner was
“And he got up there and hit a really good drive. There was a bit of old Tiger in that. He plays golf like a man.”
Katayama is different
Shingo Katayama.
Talking of dudes in the game, very few come close to Japan’s Shingo Katayama.
The world No58 is known for his habit of playing in Stetson cowboy hats, and became a rage with the fans while playing on the PGA Tour, earning him unusual nickname, ‘Cat in the Hat’. Not much has changed and even as 11 other team members wore the team cap yesterday, Katayama preferred his own choice of headwear. And that was not the only thing that set him apart. He is also one of the very few professional players who has refused to give up his belly putter.
Of course, in accordance with the new rules of the governing bodies that came into effect in 2016, he does not anchor the putter.
The common language
One of the biggest problems Team Asia faces, you’d reckon, was communication. There is no common language between them.
The Koreans cannot speak or understand English, while Chinese Wu Ashun knows only Mandarin. Thai Prayad Marksaeng can only speak and understand his mother tongue.
So, is that a massive problem in the team room or when the players are out on the golf course? Not at all, says India’s SSP Chawrasia.
“We do have a common language – golf,” he said. “A few common terms and some hand signals is all I need to know.”